Provincial Life

THE  FIRST  THREE  YEARS

 I was elected to office in December 2009 and installed as a Member of Grand Council at the National Conference in Bournemouth in May 2010

My first appointment was to the Head Office and Administration Work Group which as the name implies provides, under the chairmanship of the Grand Secretary, support for all aspects of the Association and is an ideal introduction to G.C. for the “new boy”.

I volunteered, along with fellow Director Phil Morris, to assist Grand Treasurer to reconcile the Gift Aid Contributions for both the Bursary and Benevolent Funds so that outstanding tax refunds could be claimed. This task involved many days in Head Office but provided the opportunity to get to know the Office Administrator, Gill Gregory and her staff. The Association was experiencing a problem with its former Head Office premises, now a block of six apartments, in Chesham Place Belgravia. Dry rot had been discovered and was affecting two of the flats and thus a loss of rental income to the Association. I was asked, because of my background in Construction, to help Bro. John Rayer to eradicate the problem which was extensive and proved costly to solve. I was then asked to “manage” Chesham  Place, acting as Caretaker working with our Letting Agents Chesterton Humberts. This role was interesting but time consuming, involving several trips to London and many hours spent on emails and telephone calls, until the sale of the property on the 31st October 2012.

I was in agreement when Grand Council decided the time was right to sell Chesham Place and was one of a small team of six who acted on behalf of our Association to ensure that the maximum value was obtained for the Property.

In May 2011 I was appointed as a Trustee of the Catenian Bursary Fund. This is one of two official Catenian Charities and its purpose is to provide grants which will assist young Catholics in a qualifying volunteer project. All the funding for this Charity comes from fellow Catenians, no contributions are received from outside the Association. The Trustees meet every two months in Head Office to review the applications received and award Grants as necessary.

My role as the Director of Province 4 is to provide support to Provincial Council and to each Circle in Province, and to offer informal advice when needed. I believe the best way to fulfil this role is to try and attend all monthly Circle Meetings and, whenever possible, Provincial Meetings and Events to provide liaison  between Grand Council, Provincial Council and Circles.

I see my role as to support and encourage members of our Association to visit other Circles both in and out of Province, and to seek to grow the membership of our Association.

I endeavour, as a representative of Grand Council, to attend the enrolments of new Brothers and to be present at the Funeral of those who are called to God.

Fraternally

Peter Rogers